All that is good and right and true - January 20

Today’s Readings:  AM Psalm 38; PM Psalm 119:25-48; Isa. 44:24-45:7; Eph. 5:1-14; Mark 4:1-20

One Christmas, my parents gave me a clear acrylic phone with a neon tube inside, that would emit this glowing flash of blue light when the phone rang. It was so cool. That gift signaled a threshold moment – a phone jack to be installed in my own bedroom. It was a big deal, and I was so excited. Here’s what else happened as that source of light came alive in my room: I could have phone conversations in the privacy of my own room, rather than tangled up in the long phone cord in the kitchen, where other listening ears (my sisters) were ready to soak up any information I leaked about a person or scenario. Calls in our house needed to be made prior to 8:00 p.m. and should be wrapped up by 9:00 p.m. Any time after that, a ringing phone signaled an emergency, and it was unacceptable to call people so late.

So, while there were areas of my teenage life that were vexing and created grist for my emotional mill, it was magnificent to sit on my four-poster bed and talk on the phone to my best friend Ali. We would discuss homework, social dilemmas of high school, objects of our affection, stressors from our home life…and we listened to one another. Ali has been one of the most important confidantes and guides of my life. She has been a sounding board and source of honesty and encouragement. As time took us different directions geographically for education, work, and building our lives, we exchanged long letters and emails. Ali continues to be an amazing writer, can interpret literature with the best of them, and has this gift of opening my eyes to new truths - or simply to point out ones that were always there, but I had not opened my eyes to them. Ali’s goal, as I see it, has been toward being good soil, and bearing fruit that is worthy and honest.

The goal of good soil is one of the themes in the powerful scriptures appointed for today, pointing us toward opening our ears to receive the word of God and shine that light of promise upon others. In Isaiah, we have the prophesy of Cyrus, in which the Lord promises the restoration of the Temple in Jerusalem through the machinations of the temporal pagan king of Persia. The scripture foretells of Cyrus, who reigned around 560 BCE, stating that he will be equipped by the Lord to be used for God’s glory, so that people know God.

In Mark 4, Jesus is teaching. We hear not just the extended metaphor of seed being sown upon various types of dirt and terrain, but also Jesus’ interpretation of that parable, guiding listening ears to understanding…so that we might move toward the hope of being rich soil to receive the word of God. And why would we do this? For our own benefit and glory? No, to bear fruit of beauty and sustenance to pass along to others. We are called to bear fruit that is worthy and honest.

Paul’s letter to the Ephesians calls his listeners to be imitators of God and to live in Christ’s love. “Live as children of light – for the fruit of the light is found in all that is good and right and true.” (5:8b-9) Paul continues in verse 11, “Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them.”

What healthy fruit grows when the soil is rich and light from God filters upon the leaves of the Lord’s flora! Today, as we welcome new challenges in our own lives and in that of our nation with the inauguration of Joe Biden, the 46th President of the United States, let us strive to be good soil, with God’s help. Let us bear fruit that is worthy and honest, with God’s help. And let us live as children of light, remembering that it is in God we trust.

-- Katherine+

Questions for Reflection

Who is a friend who is a confidante and source of truth for you? For whom do you fill this role?
What kind of soil do you feel like today? Rocky? Shallow? Weedy? Healthy?

Daily Challenge 

What does it mean to you to bear worthy and honest fruit today? Ponder what that feels like, and how it is manifested. Is it in the words you say? Or the mindset you embody going about your day? Pray and reflect for two minutes in silence about how God, who made all things, can stir and move you.